Forging “The Moment”
By Josh Jones, Radius Forge
One of the things I enjoy most about blacksmithing is when a project moves beyond simply making a product and becomes a true collaboration. This staircase railing was one of those projects.
When AOME first approached us about the railing, they already had a strong vision for the home and an unusual challenge. Most stair railings rely on repetition. Even when they are handcrafted, the goal is often consistency and rhythm. This project asked for something different: a moment within that rhythm that would feel sculptural, organic, and unexpected.
From the beginning, the process was highly collaborative. The homeowners, Keith Miller, the AOME team, and our crew gathered in the shop to explore ideas together. Instead of immediately jumping into drawings or computer models, much of the early design work happened the old-fashioned way—with charcoal on butcher paper spread across work tables.
There is something valuable about working through ideas at full scale. Curves can be drawn with your whole arm. Proportions can be judged by standing back and looking at them. Conversations happen naturally as everyone gathers around the same drawing. Some of my favorite moments from this project came during those early sessions, watching ideas evolve through discussion and sketching.
Once the concept began to take shape, we built a full-scale mock-up. This allowed everyone involved to see the railing as a physical object rather than an abstract drawing. The mock-up became an essential design tool. We could adjust curves, evaluate sight lines, and understand how the forged elements interacted with the stair itself. The owners and their child were involved throughout the process, helping evaluate options and react to different versions as they developed.
For a blacksmith, projects like this are particularly rewarding because they leave room for the material to participate in the design. Steel has its own character. As pieces are heated, bent, forged, and refined, they often suggest subtle adjustments that improve the final result. Some of the most successful details emerge through making rather than drawing.
What makes this project especially memorable is that the mock-up was not simply discarded after decisions were made. Because everyone committed to developing the design carefully from the beginning, much of the work completed during that stage became part of the finished railing. In a sense, this staircase began before the house itself. Long before demolition started on the site, steel was already being forged for the future home.
The finished railing represents hundreds of small decisions made by many people. Architects, designers, builders, owners, and craftspeople all contributed something important. At Radius Forge, we are proud to have played a part in bringing those ideas into physical form.
Projects like this remind me that blacksmithing is ultimately about more than shaping metal. It is about helping shape experiences, spaces, and memories. When people walk up these stairs years from now, they may not know every conversation or every sketch that led to the railing's creation. But they will experience the result of all that shared effort—and for me, that is what makes the work worthwhile.
Please See His article at AOME here: https://www.aomearchitects.com/post/how-we-designed-a-unique-staircase-railing-with-our-client
